Sunday, October 21, 2012

Teenage Home Schooling

The idea of homeschooling through high school can be scary for many parents and usually it is through feelings of inadequacy where the parents do not feel fully qualified for the job!

This happens when the parent does not have many qualifications themselves so ask themselves the questions of how could they be qualified to do that job.

It is a fact of homeschooling that many homeschooled teens can actually complete four years of traditional high-school studies in 24 months or less.

Really?

Well if you sat down and thought about it then it does seem possible when there are no distractions and the teenager is able to focus on the task at hand.

Now I am a teacher/lecturer myself and I can tell you that with over 40 years being in this profession I have witnessed major changes in the administrative workload that goes with the job. The amount of time that is spent on taking registers, collecting paperwork, preparing for activities and especially science classes, the time to tidy up and then the time spent on disciplining is all time that is eating into the actual teaching and learning times.

In fact to be honest I often ask myself the question.

"Did I train to be a teacher or an administrative manager"

Of course in the days when I completed my teacher training in the 70's it was all about developing your techniques as an educator in the classroom and all of us were assessed on our ability to relate to the students to pass on our subject knowledge in an effective and stimulating manner. In other words we were encouraged to become teachers that would inspire students to learn and develop. So be it... today we fill out forms and tick boxes.

Anyway I am getting carried away with the realities of being a teacher today but it absolutely true that the large part of a school day would be taken up in mindless administrative tasks that are totally eliminated with a teenager that is being schooled at home.

This could be one reason a family make the decision to home school their teenagers,others could be the travelling time to get to school, bullying issues, peer pressure issues or teenagers that have special needs that are not accommodated by the schools within travelling distance.

All of these factors can result in teenage stress which in turn affects learning and attainment levels.

If a family decides to homeschool their teenager then good planning and record keeping will be essential.

Of course most importantly your teenager must be up for the idea as well. You can plan your home school program with your teenager's strengths and weaknesses in mind. Also important is their learning style, are they a kinesthetic learner, a visual learner, an auditory learner or a combination of a few styles. Go for a program that will enable your teenager to pursue their interests and also cover the basics that they will need to progress further into adult education.